Spoelstra's blunder gifts Pistons OT win in NBA Cup opener
Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra had an epic gaffe in the closing moments of Miami's 123-121 overtime loss to the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night.
The Heat had a two-point lead with 1.8 seconds remaining in the extra frame. Miami gave up a wide-open, game-tying alley-oop dunk to Jalen Duren after rushing to remove a sixth player from the floor. Spoelstra proceeded to attempt to call a timeout despite not having any left. Detroit was awarded a technical foul free throw as a result and veteran guard Malik Beasley calmly knocked down the eventual winner.
What a disaster for the Heat.
— Steph Noh (@StephNoh) November 13, 2024
-Had six guys on the floor for the last possession. Barely got one guy off.
-Then they give up a lob dunk to allow the Pistons to tie.
-Spo calls a timeout he doesn't have
-Pistons make the technical FT to win the game. pic.twitter.com/cpmeJ0HDTz
The Pistons were also awarded the ball with 1.1 seconds remaining due to the excessive timeout call.
"J.B. (Bickerstaff) just drew up a great play. We didn't have the backside protected. It was just a really well-executed play," Spoelstra told the media in his postgame interview, courtesy of SiriusXNBA's Rob Perez.
"I just made a serious mental error there at the end," he continued. "That's on me. I feel horrible about it. There's really no excuse for that. I'm 17 years in. ... I knew we didn't have anything. I just got emotional and reactive on that and I just made a horrendous mistake there at the end."
Miami was able to claw back from a 14-point deficit thanks to six fourth-quarter triples from guard Tyler Herro. The Kentucky product finished the game with a season-high 40 points, including a franchise-record 10 made 3-pointers.
Cade Cunningham led the way for Detroit, tallying 21 points and nine assists.
The Heat fall to 4-6 (0-1 in NBA Cup play) while Detroit vaults them in the standings, improving to 5-7 (1-0 in Cup action).
The Heat continue NBA Cup action next, facing the Indiana Pacers in Indianapolis on Friday night. The Pistons will take on the 3-8 Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday.